Visiting the Rembrandt Etching Collection

LindaMom found an interesting exhibit for our DC outing at the Museum of Art. With 6 adults and 4 kids we all got a chance to see a little something ourselves and try to make it interesting for kids in turns. I'm just amazed to see anything last 300 years (since things get destroyed so easily in our toddler-driven home!) Tom and I both particularly liked the etching of Jesus Healing the Sick aka The Hundred Guilder Print. Elizabeth did great between saying "Oh! and Wow! while pointing to pictures while I asked her to find the dog, or the baby Jesus, and eating Grandma's little magic mints when it got tough to be quiet (the "magic" part comes in when the otherwise screeching child becomes quickly quiet:) )

We also saw the Native American Smithsonian where Tyra and Thomas plaited and twined, and Elizabeth stood as the demonstrator for anyone who wanted the buttons pushed that pronounced the names of the indian nations in the northwest. Lily took a little snooze in the stroller. It was a pretty day, and an enjoyable outing. Of course the metro is a major highlight anytime we take it into DC!

Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here!

We are lucky to have DadTom and LindaMom here (Tom's parents) and his bro Uncle Mikey, and his sis Aunt Janine and her husband Brian. We are missing Robgelena, but they are with us in spirit and internet gaming and chatting :)
The warm up time for the kids was absolute ZERO, possibly because Grandma, Grandpa, and Janine were all here just a few months ago for Tyra's baptism. Or it could be because of all the times Grandma Linda called and did songs and fingerplays for the girls to do with her. Whatever the reason, it has been a sweet and smooth transition having everyone arrive this week. They are all happy and doing great.

Tyra and Thomas have learned how to play Nintendo Mario Cart but mostly love cheering on the uncles while they play.

Lily loves doing anything with Grandma Linda and really loves the special attention and love. Elizabeth bounces around giving loves to everyone. Thomas bugs Mikey endlessly to play Nethack so he can watch.


Tyra (and Lily and Thomas) all made a great gingerbread house out of some tricky crunchy gingerbread with Aunt Janine's engineering skills mixed with her great ability to work with the kids. I've been enjoying good company: happy to have Tom take off so much work and be around for kisses all day, happy to have a great sister-in-law to chat about everything with and get good ideas and advice from, and a great nothing-to-me (brother-in-law-in-law) to generally cheer me up and cheer me on, especially when I say my negative self-talk outloud.
Grandpa Tom led us in the tradition of reading through the Christmas Book which is the christmas story with various pictures and songs throughout. Then the kids did the nativity (Tyra as Mary, Thomas as a Wiseman with Brian--sort-of, Lily as a sweet Angel, Elizabeth as a roving sheep trying to climb on Tom as the donkey, there was also Mikey as Joseph, and Grandpa as the Innkeeper.) Fun night together, with a good spirit of love.

Smile that Frown Away!!

Lily sings "If You Chance to Meet a Frown"

EJ sings

Elizabeth's tricks

Playing in the leaves

Tyra Turns 8 and Gets Baptized

Tyra's First Fast

On Sep. 3, 2006 it was Fast Sunday and I needed to know who to invite to my babtisim so I fasted. Though Thomas wouldn't let me out in peace, but just looking outside made me cry. He thought I was sad so he told me to stop crying. It took him some time to figure out that I wasn't sad but happy. When picking up some people making us late so we missed the sacrament-but at least for a good reason. At church I bore my testamony.

Lillian Regina Severina turns 3!

Lily was getting excited for her birthday long in advance (mostly thanks to her older siblings talking to her about it and helping her understand that she'd be three, and reminding her of all the perks of a birthday.) Lily woke up and could finally open the package from GramaLee that has been sitting on the mantle all week, with tempting Disney princess stickers all over it. She had help on all sides tearing it open and playing with the princess presents. After the kids went to school she went to Calder's house to play while Mom went to Costco for strawberries for her requested strawberry pink cake. She played with her new toys all afternoon while Elizabeth slept and Mom made cakes and dinner. Then the UPS man rang the doorbell (luckily not waking up the sleeping EJ) and there was a package from Grampa Lee and Pam. It was a very real looking baby doll that could coo and babble, and make sucking noises when you gave it a pacifier or bottle. She said her name is "Abbie, or something" Maybe because cousin Abbie was playing with a similarly big doll when we were at her house in the summer...

After Tyra's dance class all Lily's friends started arriving. She had Carol Anne and Ellie and Johnny Lambert, Dorian, Calder, and Auden Baldwin-Bott, Sammy and Liam Farrell, and Angela Turay all come, not to mention their parents, and Lily's nursery teacher, Sister Bott. Quite a crowd, and Lily was quite at home with them all. We ate dinner then the kids played, then Lily opened presents most graciously, and then she blew, and blew, and blew (with help) out the candles! Every time she did something new by herself today I would mention "Wow, you can do that now that you're three" and she would get the cutest proud smile!

Books We've Read

Corinne, who reads more than anyone I know, has this on her blog and I hope it will help me finish books, as I tend to start and not finish (right now I'm 1/2 way through 6 Events, No One Can Take Your Place, Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All, Three Swans, and have started over 30 others! So that's why I'm doing it. As for Tyra, she reads so many that it'll help her keep track...
Tyra



Susan

• Raspberries and Relevance
• Princess Academy
• Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc
• Twilight
• The Whipping Boy
• All Because I'm Older
• Seabiscuit
• The Gentle Touch
• Shiloh
• Mr Popper's Penguins
• New Moon
• Wild Swans
• The Goose Girl
• Ella Enchanted
• No One Can Take Your Place
• The Simeon Solution
• The Blue Castle
• The Secret Life of Bees
• Mormons and Masons
• Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All
• The Great Hedge of India
• Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
• The Arm of the Starfish
• My Side of the Mountain
• Second Summer of the Traveling Pants
• Girls in Pants
• Enna Burning
• Jean and Johnny
• The Lovely Bones
• Eclipse
• The Midwife's Apprentice
• White Oleander
• River Secrets
• A Thousand Splendid Suns
• Things Fall Apart
• Bridget Jones's Diary
• Pride and Prejudice
• Austenland
• Me and Mr. Darcy
• Forever in Blue
• The Phantom Tollbooth
• The Amateur Marriage
• Garlic and Sapphires
• A Good Man is Hard to Find (1/2)
• An Assembly Such as This
• Duty and Desire
• These Three Remain
  

Draper kids are back in Maryland

Well, we're back home after a summer of fun in the California sun. Tyra and Thomas started school on Thursday, 4 days after school started, because we didn't fly home until Wednesday. Thomas already knew who his teacher would be because he had been going to her class 1/2 days for last couple months of Kindergarten (not to mention Tyra had been her class the year before that). He was completely comfortable with Mrs. Cullens. We didn't know whose class Tyra would be in and the only teacher we even knew by name was Mrs. Appleman. When we saw the list on the front door before going in we saw she was in Mrs. Appleman with her two best friends, Megan and Solangel. As soon as we were at the door (we were 2 or 3 minutes late) a smiling Mrs. Appleman said "You must be Tyra" while most of the class called out "Tyra!" "Tyra". It was a great start. Thomas didn't want to go into his room, but did with me to find his cubby. And then we looked for his seat. I told him I would sit at the back and he said I couldn't leave. Well, by the time he was sitting down for his reading lesson he had no problem giving me his "I love you" in sign language wave (the one he's been using to say goodbye to me ever since he first took off in Dorian's car for preschool.


The kids have been playing and playing with all their toys. That was one of the few things they missed this summer. They especially love k'nex and legos. I've been adding to the collections in my thrift store shopping. Even Lily and Liza have enjoyed the legos. We have the huge duplos for Elizabeth, and the regular duplos for Lily. Now we just need to get Tom his Mindstorms and we'll be the buildingest family in town! I love watching all the blond heads looking down, intent on their latest creations. And it makes me smile to listen to them eagerly explain what each and every part is for (i.e. "This is the blaster, and these are the computers, here are the seats..."etc)


Anne kept telling me all summer that Elizabeth was talking. I sort of shrugged it off or laughed. But there's no denying it now, her yeah's and no's are distinct, and she can mimic many words when prompted: "Can you say Grampa?"


Lily is in a really tough stage of needing more sleep and desperately not wanting to let herself fall asleep while it's sunny and bright outside. I think we may need to move up her bedtime. She falls apart constantly, all throughout the day, fussing, whining, crying. She IS fun with the regular 2 year old things of defiance and doing things by herself. I love seeing her proud-of-herself smile. My best way so far to get her to stop crying/tantrumming is to act really impressed with her crying skills. Then she usually laughs. But it's tough, no doubt about it.


Well, that's it for now, no cute little story, I just want to get this blogger thing started. I'm going to try to start a spot for the kids to write, and maybe a separate spot for the short, funny, anecdotes. This is just to be my journal mostly...